title: epicuticle lipids mediate mate recognition in Triatoma infestans.
abstract: Epicuticular lipids are contact cues in intraspecific chemical communication in insects, both for aggregation and sexual behavior. Triatomine bugs are vectors of the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, the cause of Chagas disease. In Triatoma infestans, the major epicuticular lipids are hydrocarbons, fatty alcohols, and free and esterified fatty acids. Previously, we found that epicuticular lipid extracts, or selected fatty acid components, trigger aggregation and arrestment behavior in this bug. Using headspace solid phase microextraction, we found no sexual dimorphism in epicuticular hydrocarbons, but found female-specific fatty alcohols (eicosanol and docosanol). The role of epicuticular lipids in T. infestans copulation behavior was tested by observing male responses to live or various treatments of freeze-killed females. We report that hexane-soluble contact cues on females trigger copulation by males. Freeze-killed intact females were attractive to males, but no response was observed when males were exposed to hexane-washed females. Responses were partially recovered when epicuticular extract was applied to the dorsal surface of dead, hexane-washed females. One female equivalent of docosanol, evoked similar responses.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de La Plata (CCT La Plata CONICET-UNLP), Facultad de Ciencias Medicas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina.
authors.forename: Luciana María
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Cocchiararo-Bastias
authors.forename: Sergio Javier
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Mijailovsky
authors.forename: Gustavo Mario
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Calderon-Fernández
authors.forename: Alicia Nieves Lorenzo
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Figueiras
authors.forename: M Patricia
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Juárez
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015777:Eicosanoids / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D005233:Fatty Alcohols / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D006586:Hexanes / Q000737:chemistry; D006838:Hydrocarbons / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D008297:Male; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal; D052617:Solid Phase Microextraction; D014224:Triatoma / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D015777:Eicosanoids; D005233:Fatty Alcohols; D006586:Hexanes; D006838:Hydrocarbons; C529236:docosanol